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Brittney Griner added 12 points and 11
rebounds, Megan Gustafson scored 12 and Sug Sutton had 11 for
the Mercury (6-15). Phoenix won a second straight game for the
first time this season despite playing without Diana Taurasi,
who had quad and toe injuries.
Kahleah Copper scored 17 points to lead the Sky (8-13), whose
bench was outscored 45-19 by its counterparts. Chicago took its
fourth loss in a row.
Sophie Cunningham and Michaela Onyenwere made consecutive
3-pointers as the Mercury increased their 10-point halftime lead
to 18 early in the third quarter.
Copper scored eight points and Dana Evans added four during a
19-2 run that pulled the Sky within 52-50.
Peddy made a 3-pointer to end a 3 1/2-minute scoring drought for
Phoenix, and she added another 3-pointer less than a minute
later to give the Mercury a 58-50 lead at the end of the third
quarter.
She stayed hot, scoring Phoenix's first five points of the
fourth quarter, and Griner added two free throws to push the
lead to 13 as the Mercury regained control.
Chicago, which hadn't played since an 84-72 home loss to the
Connecticut Sun on July 12, started very slowly on offense.
Eight Mercury players made a field goal during the first seven
minutes as Phoenix opened a 19-5 lead.
Ruthy Hebard made one of two free throws to end a nearly
five-minute scoring drought for the Sky, and Evans' layup ended
a six-minute field-goal drought, trimming Phoenix's lead to 22-8
at the end of the first quarter.
Chicago's Robyn Parks made a jumper to start the second-quarter
scoring. Almost five minutes later, Onyenwere's 3-pointer gave
the Mercury their biggest lead of the half, 33-16.
Elizabeth Williams and Copper scored five points each as the Sky
finished with a 14-7 run that cut Phoenix's lead to 40-30 at
halftime.
--Field Level Media
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